Defendant Committed the Robberies in Less Than Three Months;
Faces Up to 21 Years in Federal Prison
Baltimore, Maryland –Anthony Eugene Wiggins, age 40, of
Baltimore, Maryland, pleaded guilty yesterday in federal court to a string of
robberies, including five bank robberies and five armed robberies at liquor
stores, committed between September 24, 2018 and November 15, 2018, as well as
an attempted robbery on November 15, 2018.
Wiggins was on federal supervised release at the time of the robberies,
having previously been convicted for being a felon in possession of
firearm. During each of the liquor and
convenience store robberies, Wiggins brandished a firearm and, in two
instances, discharged the firearm during the robberies. In nearly all of the robberies, Wiggins
threatened victim employees with physical violence and, during one robbery,
fought with and assaulted a store customer and a victim employee.
The guilty plea was announced by United States Attorney for
the District of Maryland Robert K. Hur; Special Agent in Charge Jennifer C.
Boone of the Federal Bureau of Investigation, Baltimore Field Office;
Commissioner Michael Harrison of the Baltimore Police Department; Chief Melissa
R. Hyatt of the Baltimore County Police Department; and Chief Charles Moore of
the Bel Air Police Department.
According to his plea agreement, between September 24 and
October 18, 2018, Wiggins committed robberies at five separate Maryland banks,
including two banks in Baltimore, and one each in White Marsh, Bel Air, and
Arbutus.
As detailed in his plea agreement, between November 2 and
November 15, 2018, Wiggins committed five armed robberies at four liquor stores
in Dundalk, Middle River, and Baltimore, Maryland. Wiggins admitted that he discharged a firearm
in two of those robberies, specifically, a robbery in Dundalk on November 2,
2018 and a robbery in Baltimore on November 13, 2018, and brandished a firearm
in the other three robberies. Wiggins
also attempted to rob a fifth liquor store, located in Dundalk, on November 15,
2018.
Wiggins and the government have agreed that, if the Court
accepts the plea agreement, Wiggins will be sentenced to between 10 years and
19 years in federal prison for the robberies and gun charge, and up to two
years in federal prison for violating his federal supervised release. U.S. District Judge George L. Russell has
scheduled sentencing for March 27, 2020 at 2:00 p.m.
This case is part of Project Safe Neighborhoods (PSN), a
program bringing together all levels of law enforcement and the communities
they serve to reduce violent crime and make our neighborhoods safer for
everyone. Project Safe Neighborhoods
(PSN) is the centerpiece of the Department of Justice’s violent crime reduction
efforts. PSN is an evidence-based
program proven to be effective at reducing violent crime. Through PSN, a broad
spectrum of stakeholders work together to identify the most pressing violent
crime problems in the community and develop comprehensive solutions to address
them. As part of this strategy, PSN focuses enforcement efforts on the most
violent offenders and partners with locally based prevention and reentry
programs for lasting reductions in crime.
United States Attorney Robert K. Hur commended the FBI, the
Baltimore Police Department, the Baltimore County Police Department, and the
Bel Air Police Department for their work in the investigation. Mr. Hur thanked Assistant U.S. Attorneys Paul
A. Riley and Mary W. Setzer, who are prosecuting the case.
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